Improvement in dental cavity-caps



H. WESTON.

DENTAL cAvrTv-cAr.

No. 185,710. Patented nec.ze,1a7e.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY WESTON, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO SAMUEL S.WHITE, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN DENTAL CAVITV-CAPS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N o. 185,7 l0, datedDecember 26, 1876; application led October 24, 1876.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY WEsToN, of the city and county ofPhiladelphia, and State of Pennsylvania. have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Cavity-Gaps for Dental Purposes, of which thefollowing is a specification In filling the cavities of natural teeth,to destroy the nerve by the use of medicinal prep arations, or topreserve the nerve by the use of oxychloride ofzinc or other plasticllings, great difficulty has heretofore been encountered in gaging thequantity of the preparation, or of the tilling to be used, in itsinsersertion into the cavity, and in retaining and protecting thefilling after its insertion.

The object of my invention is to obvate these difficulties, and torender the operai ion more easy, certain, and reliable, with a saving oftime and patience to the operator, and of suffering to the patient,which ends I attain by the use of a cavity-cap of peculiar construction,as hereinafter particularly described.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lrepresents a perspective view of acavity-cap constructed according to my invention; Fig. 2, a centralsection through the same; and Fig. 3 represents a sectional view of atooth with my improved cap inserted in a cavity therein.

A concave or cup-shaped disk, A, which may be of metal or any othersuitable material, is provided, preferablyy near its center, with anaperture or opening, a, and on its convex or outer side with a lip orlug, a', forconvenience in handling. I prefer to construct these caps bystamping them from a strip of suitable n1etal,-go1d,for instance-aportion thereof being cnt out to leave an opening, and bent backward toform the lng or lip.

In some instances I dispense with the opening in the cap, and secure thelug thereon by brazing or riveting; but the construction shown ispreferred.

In operation I select a cap of proper size, and handle it, by means of apair ot' tweezers engaging with its lip or lug, and, after filling thecap with the preparation to be used, (which may be done by simplydipping it therein,) convey it and its contents into the cavity of thetooth, which should be made slightly' undercut, or withretaining-points. A gentle pressure Will cause the surplus material toescape through the aperture in the cap, the lip of which may be thenbent down to close said aperture, in order to permit of the insertion ofanother filling of different material upon the cap, it' desired. Thecap, however, may be removed, leaving the contents with which it wasfilled inserted in the tooth.

I am aware that cavity-caps, and like devices for protecting the nervesof teeth, have heretofore been suggested but such devices do not possessthe merits and characteristics of my invention; and, also, that aconcavoconvex cavity-cap, to crown a cement filling, broadly considered,is not new.

I claim as of my own inventionl. The dental cavity-cap hereinbeforedescribed, consisting` of a cup-shaped disk provided with a lip or lugon its convex side, for the purpose set forth.

2. The dental cavity-cap hereinbefore described, consisting ofacup-disk, with the central portion cut out and bent up to form a lugand leave an opening in the cap, for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name.

HENRY WESTON.

Witnesses:

J. A. B. WILLIAMS, F. L. HIsE.

